i'm david muir. on "world news" this saturday -- the storm surge tonight, as hurricane bill pnds the east coast with huge waves and dangerous rip tides. the warnings are up tonight and we have reports along the coast. a stunning apology. 40 years after the infamous my lai massacre,

hundreds of civilians were killed, the only american soldier convicted now breaks his silence. off the road. car dealers pulling out of the cash for clunkers. what now f buyers looking to get in on the deal. a presidential pilsner, hail to the chief. a presidential pilsner, hail to the chief. obama treats. captions paid for by abc, inc. good evening, everyone. this is hurricane bill, just behind me tonight. spinning up the east coast with winds up to 85 miles per hour. surf warnings from florida up to connecticut. meteorologist are taking notice of the size and scope of the hurricane. in fact, look at the view from the international space station tonight. bill is 550 miles wide, that's the distance from new york city to detroit. the track at this hour, the good news, it's expected to remain offshore as you see there. the bad news, the treacherous rip tide. we have two reports tonight. beginning with abc's stephanie

sy. she's in eastham, massachusetts b, on cape cod. stephanie, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, david. we have been given special permission to stand on one of many beaches closed along the east coast. people have been driving here to try to catch a glimpse of the swelling sea, but they're turned away because it's too dangerous. you can hardly see because of that fog. the ocean is growing by the minute. in the next several hours, those waves could reach as high as two stories tall. bill blew through bermuda with 100-mile-per-hour winds. cutting power to thousands of residents and sending massive waves crashing on shore. >> they went like 20 feet in the air. very tall. >> reporter: the category 1 hurricane is moving north up the east coast. with maximum sustained winds of 85 miles per hour. turning up seas from new york to newfoundland which take a direct hit.

canada is takingng its precaution onon the u.s. inland, the massachusetts cot is p preredicd to see the worst of bill's winds and waves overnight. ny parts of thcoast, including martha's veyard, where the obamama famamily is so arriveor a family vavacation tomoow, remains der r a tropical storm waing. dangerous rip tides d high surf are prohibiting swimmmmingn one of the last weekenends of summ. >> it was really intense out there. there are huge. >> when i rned around d ththe gs had the chrs and they just swept away like 40 feet babackc. >> reporter:r: earlier today, vacationerers aloncape cod w we able to squeeze out sosome bch and en boatingng time. but the captain wouldn't go beyond t the calr bay.y. >> don't mess with mother nature. always be prepared. make sure your boat is secured. stay safe. better safe than sorry. >> reporter: on the outer coast, ten-foot waves crashed on to deserted beaches. fishermen secured their boats anticipating worsening seas. >> it's quiet, because it's the calm before the storm.

you can never trust a hurricane. >> if you had a boat out here, you got to say, well, what if? >> reporter: some meteorologists predict hurricane bill may not be the last that brushes new england this year. >> we're hoping that hurricane bill isn't the warning shot. >> reporter: what's interesting it's the new moon cycle which has just begun, creating a higher tide, combined with hurricane bill, david, that's creating these very dangerous waters. back to you. >> stephanie sy, the lone person there. now more on those warnings up and down the coast. the rip tide dangers ruining vacation plans. marysol castro is on the tip of long island this evening. >> reporter: good evening, david. folks took to the beach all day here in montauk. some even venturing into the water. but tonight, the waves are much more treacherous. and as you can see behind me, folks are playing it safe at the water's edge. punishing surf only a surfer would love.

hurricane bill managed up to churn up 15-foot waves. were you nervous? >> i was stoked about it. oh, yeah. buddies from florida were going to come up to chase the storm north. >> reporter: others were more cautious. dangerous rip currents capable of sweeping swimmers out to shore, kept many beachgoers on shore. >> your kids are right here. all it takes one wave that can go over them. >> there are a lot of big rip tides. the waves are really big becse of hurricane bill. it's going to keep building throughout the day. we need to keep people out of the water. >> reporter: rip currents are especially dangerous during a hurricane. they form when water flows away from the shore. the water gets sucked out creating a powerful challenge. that can pull a swimmer under water and out to sea. lifeguards say don't panic. swim parallel to the shore to break free of the rip current. david, hurricane bill is still a

category 1, packing 85-mile-per-hour winds. it's a very quick-moving storm. it's moving about 24 miles per hour. right up the east coast. very interesting to see what happens in the overnight hours. david? >> the quicker the better thank you very much. we know marysol will be tracking the storm forecast overnight. she'll have more first thing in the morning on "good morning america." now, we turn this evening to the surprising move by some car dealerships to end the cash for clunkers program early. this was supposed to be the final weekend. many customers looking to get in with two days left got an unwelcome surprise. here's laura marquez tonight. >> reporter: bad news for the few shoppers who showed up at this florida car lot, hoping to take advantage of the cash for clunkers program. >> unfortunately i'm too late. >> reporter: hundreds of dealerships stopped the program early. citing an overload of paperwork. >> i we felt that we needed the three days to do the paperwork.

we did not want to take a chance on missing a reimbursement. that exceeds the profit on the car. >> please hold. >> reporter: for those car dealerships still accepting clunkers, business was brisk. >> so this is your car? >> this is my car. >> reporter: how old is the car? >> ten years old. >> she wants to turn in her old ford explorer and use the money for a hybrid. >> the timing was right. the ending is coming. >> reporter: the program is steering drivers away from gas guzzlers like this one. and putting them behind the wheel of cars that get 60%. good news for the owner and the environment. the biggest compint, dealers waiting on their money. this dealership has submitted $3 million in claims but yet to see a dime. any concerns that you're not going to get reimbursed? >> at this point, i don't believe so. even though it's been slow moving. we'll get the money, just a little slower moving than we hoped. >> reporter: the incentive program has worked, say dealers. giving a boost to the ailing

auto industry. they worry what will happen to sales after the program stops monday. laura marquez, abc news, los angeles. we turn now to washington, where there are stunning new allegations tonight about the cia's alleged abuse of terrorism suspects. a new report, comes out on monday. tonight's "newsweek" is reportg some eye-opening details. here's abc's john cochran now. >> reporter: reports on cia interrogation tactics. have ranged from waterboarding to sleep deprivation. now, allegations, that a happened gun and electric drill were used to try to break down an al qaeda commander nashiri. the cia wanted to frighten him into thinking he would be shot or torture. bob baer says federal law prohibits threatening a prisoner with imminent death. >> i think it's clear that the law has been violated.

i don't see how we can let this pass. >> reporter: president obama has seemed unenthusiastic about prosecuting cia officials. >> i don't want them to spend time looking over their shoulders. >> reporter: but mr. obama said the decision is up to attorney general eric holder. who could name a special prosecutor to investigate the bush years. >> my obligation as head of the justice department is to make sure that the laws are followed and to the extent that laws were broken to hold people accountable. >> reporter: the last director of the cia in the bush years, says a special prosecutor would damage cia morale. >> i think it's just destructive of the agency and unfair to the good people who did what they did out of duty. >> look, they're talking about the cia, it's going to hurt the morale. it doe't matter whether it hurts the morale or not. >> reporter: david, in our last poll on this, americans were

almost equally divided when we asked whether the obama administration should investigate interrogation tactics used during bush administration. 50% said go ahead and investigate. 47% said don't. >> our senior correspondent john cochran in washington tonight. thank you. there's more anger this evening over the release of the lone man convicted in the bombing pan am 103. the head of the fbi has september a letter to scott land. here's abc's lama hasan now. >> reporter: the hero's welcome continues for convicted killer megrahi. embraced here by libya's leader. gadhafi's praised scotland's decision to release megrahi early on humanitarian grounds. but that decision is widely condemned by the u.s. most recently in a letter by robert mueller. i'm outraged at your decision, he says.

calling it a mockery of the rule of law. and by new york senator chuck schumer. >> if libya wants to be embraced by the international community, embracing convicted terrorists is not the way to do. it's revolting to me. to the victims' families. to all people of goodwill in every country of this world. >> reporter: families of the victims on both sides of the atlantic are also angry. by the release and by his warm welcome in libya. >> he was convicted of mass murder. a convicted terrorist. >> i don't think that he deserves the right to be home with his family. >> reporter: but some families especially in britain, believe that megrahi is the wrong man. and megrahi himself claims to have new ed proving his innocence. evidence he says he'll release someday. he may be a free man today. with just months to live with prostate cancer, he is serving a sentence he cannot reverse.

lama hasan, abc news, london. there are reports that the taliban in pakistan haveamed a new leader today, lied to several attacks. including an attack on sri lanka cricket team. the previous pakistan taliban leader is believed to have been killed by a cia missile strike. and in britain, a champion female stunt pilot from california was killed during practice for an acrobatic air show. she was the 2007 u.s. national acrobatic champion. her manager said the plane appeared to have mechanical problems and she was unable to eject. still ahead on "world news" this saturday -- the man who came to symbolize vietnam war. what he said coming up. wiwith so many americans drowning in debt now, looking for help.

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speaking in columbus, georgia, william calley said -- he then added -- calley was a young army lieutenant. when a court martial convicted him of killing 21 civilians. he always said he was following orders. 40 years later, he says he followed them foolishly and broke the law in doing so. the horrific details from my lai shocked americans and eroded support. president nixon reduced calley's sentence. he served three years under house arrest. over the years, calley has shied away from the public eye. working a at a family jewelry store. but calley broke his silence

friday. >> i looked around the room as he was speaking, you could have hear a pin drop. in fact, there were some open mouths along the way. it was very interesting. and i would say that, it was a transfixed audience by all means. >> reporter: speaking softly, his words labored. calley offered his apology first. then answered questions. there was an ovation at the end. >> i was surprised. i didn't think the man would ever apologize. i'm glad that he did. it's about time. >> reporter: at the vietnam war memorial we found heather, she accepted the apology. >> he will probably go to heaven because of that. >> there's already debate about the apology, whether to accept it or whether it's too little too late. this note out of pennsylvania tonight, a pittsburgh-area health club opened this morning for the first time since a deadly

rampage three weeks ago. three women were killed and nine others were injured by george sodini who wrote on his website he hated women. sodini then killed himself. in central kentucky, riot ing inmates, battled for years. the prison had been locked down since tuesday. when we come back on the broadcast tonight -- the companies that offer to cut youh alcr cf.arcosts in half. there is a hidden catch and our consumer reporter goes looking for answers tonight. find the right time with cialis for daily use... a clinically proven, low-dose tablet for erectile dysfunction you take every day so you can be ready anytime the moment is right. tell your doctor about your medical condition and all medications and ask if you're healthy enough for sexual activity. don't take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as this may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. don't drink alcohol in excess with cialis. side effects may include headache,

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we're going to take a "closer look" tonight at dignggi out debt.ou ushoamount of money thweds.s n o weubd has nearly doubled in the past 30 years. o americans w e owon average much more than they take home. a growing number of companies are helping them get out of debt, for a fee. as elisabeth leamy reports, some say that supposed help actually drove them deep in debt. >> reporter: this is the sound of success.

according to credit solutions of america, the largest debt settlement company in the country. they ring the bell every time they persuade a credit card company to settle someone's debt. for less than they really owe. thousands of unhappy customers have complained. >> i had no contact with them for over a year. >> repeporter: karen was deep i debt when she saw an add for credit solutions on tv. >> we dramatically reduce you debt. >> she remain in theredit solutions program for 20 years. during that time, they didn't initiate a single debt settlement for her. but it deduct d its fee each month. $2,088, and nothing to show for it. >> and karen's not alone. >> t these are all of the complaints. >> reporter: the better business bureau has collected more than 1,500 complaints. attorney generals in three states have filed suit and

there's a class action suit on potentially thousands of former customers. >> we have a proven track record of success. and hureds and thousands of people who have successfully completed our program. >> reporter: the company blames its legal troubles on a one-year period from december 2006 to december 2007. which the company was under different ownership. what percentage of your customers make it all of the way through the three-year program? >> oh, another great numbers question. i don't have a specific answer to that. >> reporter: but the new york attorney general says he does. alleging credit solutions settles debts for only 1% of customers in his state. does credit solutions hurt some people more than it helps them? >> there are no easy solutions to those plastic credit cards that are out there. but we're a big part of the solution for many customers out there.

>> reporter: but karen moore said the company wasn't the solution for her. >> it's eye-opening. some people have been able to arrange a debt settlement with their own credit card companies. more information on that go to our website, abcnews.com wwhen --wh we mco back -- martha vineyard's preparing for a second hurricane and they want it. i never thought it could happen to me... a heart attack at 53. i had felt fine. but turns out... my cholesterol and other risk factors... increased my chance of a heart attack. i should've done something.

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and finally tonight, here on the broadcast, after the winds of hurricane bill past by martha's vineyard, a storm of secret service will move in as it plays host to a presidential vacation. that begins tomorrow. president obama and first lady and their girls will spend a week on the island. family dog, bo, will be there, ttoo. his image is already everywhere. the owner hopes she can work her vineyard connection to personally deliver bo s snacks. >> we're trying to get, you know, get into those circles and

see if we can get them the basket of treats. >> reporter: the obamas are renting blue heron farms. reportedly owned by a mississippi businessman, a republican. it's seems even politics will be taking at least a short break. the obamas will be staying in a rural area of the island. they'll have a swimming pool, basketball court. but the locals here hope the first family will be sightseeing, too. already there's already a presidential brew on tap. a presidential pilsner. >> decided to go with an ale. how about a presidential ale? and born was the name presidenti-ale. >> reporter: they have said that before on the vineyard. during the clinton years, martha's vineyard was often the vacation destination. but make no mistake, they're looking to make new history here. the new t-shirts, the hats, the biscuits and br have already been made.

we'll havemea t there reporting on the presidential vacation.ea >> that's world news for this saturday night. and tomorrow morning on "good morning america" -- as you saw marysol castro was on long island, she's tracking the forecast of hurricane bill nierght. i'm david muir from all of us here at abc news, thank you for watching tonight. good night. p